Heretofore, in amusement devices, such as slot machine games, efforts have been made to create incentive producing means by the use of an apparatus that provides various choices or options that are made available to the player. In one such slot machine game, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,579,241, the player is allowed to hold or retain one or more of the previously displayed symbols with the possibility of creating a match on the next spin and thereby creating a winning condition. However, if the player is not successful in this blind judgment, he may quickly loss incentive to operate the game and discontinue play.
In more recent game devices, a player is allowed to build up a winning combination by progressively holding winning symbols on several reels until a desirable combination appears. A game device of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,845. Another disclosure, U.S. Pat. No. 4,184,683, teaches that the player can select a particular symbol at which one of the drums of a slot machine game will stop with the hope of having the other drums of the slot machine game stop on a matching symbol. Yet another game device, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,377, allows the player to advance one of the reels one symbol position in an attempt to create a winning combination.
Electronic game apparatus using a displaying means such as a video screen have been disclosed that allow the player to control the symbols on the displaying device. Mau in U.S. Pat. No. 4,114,882 discloses an electronic game in which means is provided for the player to vary the velocity of a ball image and to move the ball image in an erratic fashion to increase the challenge and incentive to continue play. Thompson in U.S. Pat. No. 3,715,811 refers a player of an educational game to any one of a number of branching routines according to the response of the player to certain presented educational material. The effect of this device is to determine the instructional level of the player by noting the response to certain educational materials which may provide continued interest in operating the device.
The intent of all of these devices is to incorporate options into the function of a game to maintain interest in the game. It is apparent that maintaining player interest in play, and thereby incentive to play, is viewed as a definite need in the game apparatus industry. In each case, the changes in game operation occur in response to player operation of the device. If the outcome is successful due to those changes, it is possible that the player will be inspired to continue play. If, however, the outcome is unsuccessful, the player is likely to become discouraged and discontinue playing because his unsuccessful combination was partially a product of his failure to pick or hold the right symbol.